Author: Emily Martin

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Today In Books

Florida Mother Behind Amanda Gorman Ban Has Links to Proud Boys: Today in Books

Hasan Minhaj Joins Cast of It Ends With Us

Hasan Minhaj has joined the cast of It Ends With Us. The actor/comedian will play Marshall opposite Blake Lively and Justin Baldoni in Wayfarer Studios and Sony Pictures’ film adaptation of the Colleen Hoover novel. Jenny Slate and Brandon Sklenar have also joined the cast. Baldoni is also directing the project.

Florida Mother Behind Amanda Gorman Ban Has Proud Boy Links

Daily Salinas, the parent behind the banning of Amanda Gorman’s poem at a Florida school, appears to have attended Proud Boys rallies and has previously posted antisemitic memes online. Salinas can be seen at several Proud Boys events in screenshots tweeted by the group Miami Against Fascism. In one photo, Salinas can be seen standing next to Enrique Tarrio, the group’s neo-fascist leader who was found guilty of seditious conspiracy last month. Miami Against Fascism also posted pictures of Salinas’ involvement with the controversial Christian nationalist organization County Citizens Defending Freedom USA. Salinas claims that she is not a member of these organizations but was in attendance at protests when they were present. Salinas also admitted she had not read the works she requested the school district to ban: “I’m not a reader. I’m not a book person. I’m a mom involved in my children’s education.”

Courtney B. Vance and Dr. Robin L. Smith Reveal Book Cover for The Invisible Ache

Courtney B. Vance and Dr. Robin L. Smith are sharing the cover of their new book The Invisible Ache: Black Men Identifying Their Pain and Reclaiming Their Power. In the book, Vance, the Tony and Emmy-Award winning actor, and Dr. Smith, bestselling author and former “Therapist-in-Residence” on The Oprah Winfrey Show, seek to advocate for their community’s mental health and well-being. Namely, they want to “change the discourse around mental health for Black men.” Vance and Dr. Smith first connected after Vance lost his son to suicide in 2020. Together, the two are now sharing his story in a book that is part memoir, part psychology, and part self-help book. The Invisible Ache will publish on November 7.

The Best Road Trip Nonfiction to Get You in the Mood for Summer

It’s road trip season! These thought-provoking road trip nonfiction books are about hitting the road to search for something larger.

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Today In Books

Winnie-the-Pooh is Teaching Texas Kids to Run, Hide, Fight in a Shooting: Today in Books

Marvel Delays Thunderbolts Season Amid Writers Strike

The ongoing writers strike will mean delays for Marvel’s production of Thunderbolts, which is set to star Sebastian Stan and Florence Pugh. The film was aiming to start shooting next month in Atlanta. Now the hope is to begin production after the strike. Beef creator Lee Sung Jin was the most recent writer on the film. Jake Schreier will direct the project. Also joining the cast are David Harbour, Wyatt Russell, Hannah John-Kamen, Olga Kurylenko, Julia Louis-Dreyfus, Ayo Edebiri, and Steven Yeun.

Winnie-the-Pooh is Teaching Texas Kids to “Run, Hide, Fight” in a Shooting

Texas schoolchildren are being given Winnie-the-Pooh cartoon books that teaches them to “run, hide, fight” if a shooting happens at their school. The Stay Safe book, produced by a law enforcement consulting firm in Houston, has been sent home with children as young as 4 years old. Parents and teachers were not consulted before the book was distributed, and now they’re raising concern. “I found it extremely disturbing, and was very uncomfortable with the whole contents of the book,” one Dallas teacher, who requested to remain anonymous, said. Democratic governor of California, Gavin Newsom, tweeted, “Winnie the Pooh is now teaching Texas kids about active shooters because the elected officials do not have the courage to keep our kids safe and pass common sense gun safety laws.”

Midtown Scholar Named Publishers Weekly‘s Bookstore of the Year

Midtown Scholar in Harrisburg, PA, has been named Publishers Weekly‘s Bookstore of the Year. The winner was announced at the U.S. Book Show on May 22. In addition to Midtown Scholar, the 2023 nominees included Edmonds Bookshop (Edmonds, WA), Harvey’s Tales (Geneva, IL), Interabang Books (Dallas, TX), and Main Street Books (Lafayette, IN). Midtown Scholar co-owners Catherine Lawrence and Eric Papenfuse accepted the award from PW editorial director Jim Milliot. “We are so honored,” said Lawrence. “We’d like especially to thank our customers for being supportive of us through the difficult times of Covid and into the future. We are looking forward to what comes next.”

The Bestselling Horror Books of All Time

Love all things scary? You’ll want to make sure you’ve read the bestselling horror of all time.

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Today In Books

Amanda Gorman Gutted After Florida School Bans Biden Inauguration Poem: Today in Books

Daniel Dae Kim’s Spy Drama Butterfly Lands Series Order at Amazon

Amazon has given a series order to the scripted drama series Butterfly, based on the Boom Studios graphic novel of the same name. Daniel Dae Kim is set to star and executive produce the project. The six-episode series tells the story of David Jung, a former U.S. intelligence operative who lives in South Korea. After decisions from his past come back to haunt him, his quiet life is completely upended and he finds himself pursued by a deadly, sociopathic young agent named Rebecca, who has been assigned to kill him. Right now, it’s unclear when work on Butterfly will continue was the Writer’s Guild of America is currently on strike.

Amanda Gorman “Gutted” After Florida School Bans Biden Inauguration Poem

Poet Amanda Gorman has vowed to defeat book bans in Florida after her poem “The Hill We Climb” was banned in an educational institution in Miami-Dade county. Gorman read the poem at Joe Biden’s presidential inauguration. The poet says she was “gutted” to learn that a complaint from a single parent led to the poem being banned. The parent, who mistakenly listed Oprah Winfrey as the author of the poem, argued that the poem was “not educational and have indirectly hate messages.” In a post on Twitter, Gorman responded, “So they ban my book from young readers, confuse me with Oprah, fail to specify what parts of my poetry they object to, refuse to read any reviews, and offer no alternatives … Unnecessary book bans like these are on the rise, and we must fight back.”

Here’s the Cover for Marie-Helene Bertino’s New Novel Beautyland

Literary Hub has revealed the cover of Marie-Helene Bertino’s upcoming novel Beautyland, which will be published by Farrar Straus & Giroux in January 2024. The cover was designed by Thomas Colligan. Bertino writes of the cover, “Thomas Colligan made this unified burst of color that manages to hold the single life and the epic. The everythingness evoked by a solo star. If I saw this book on someone’s coffee table I’d say, WHAT is that? If it was someone else’s cover, I’d covet it.” The book is available for preorder now and will be available on January 16.

15 Excellent 2023 Short Story Collections by Asian Authors

These new short story collections from Asian and Asian diaspora voices are insightful, deeply strange, intense, and profound.

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Book Radar

This is What TikTok is Reading in 2023 and More Book Radar!

The Thursday vibes are real, friends.

What does that mean? It means it’s been a long week and I can’t believe it’s not Friday yet. Ya girl is tired. I just want to cuddle cats and bury myself in quilts. That’s what I mean by Thursday vibes. What does Thursday mean to you? Let me know. And in the meantime, let’s talk books or something.

Book Riot has a new podcast for you to check out if you’re looking for more bookish content in your life. First Edition will include interviews, lists, rankings, retrospectives, recommendations, and much more, featuring people who know and love books. You can subscribe to First Edition on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, or your podcatcher of choice.

Book Deals and Reveals

everyone who can forgive me is dead book cover

Marie Clare revealed the cover of Jenny Hollander’s Everyone Who Can Forgive Me is Dead. This twisty thriller is out from Minotaur Books on February 6, 2024.

The first trailer for the musical film The Color Purple has finally dropped! The Color Purple is out in theaters on Christmas Day.

Jane Lynch, Robert Colindrez, Carrie Brownstein, Roxane Gay, and Jenn Collela will offer their voice work in Audible’s Dykes to Watch Out For, an adaptation of Alison Bechdel’s comic series.

Best-selling author Megan Abbott’s latest novel is being adapted for the big screen. In a tweet, Megan Abbott wrote, “I’m so excited about this. Plus: when (& only when) the WGA strike ends and we get our fair contract, I’ll be writing the script.” Abbott’s novel Beware the Woman is coming out on May 30.

Marvel’s weekly podcast has announced that Daredevil will relaunch with Daredevil #1 on September 13. Taking over for writer Chip Zdarsky is Saladin Ahmed, the beloved Miles Morales and Ms. Marvel writer.

Actress Thora Birch will be making her feature directorial debut on an adaptation of Elmore Leonard’s 2004 crime novel Mr. Paradise.

Chiwetel Ejiofor will be joining the cast of Venom 3, starring Tom Hardy. Details about Ejiofor’s character are still being kept under wraps, but Hardy will return as the titular character and serve as producer.

Barnes & Noble Union Square’s ticketed event with Ali Hazelwood in conversation with Adriana Herrera and Sarah MacLean is sold out. But you can attend the event virtually by purchasing a ticket from Eventbrite.

Want to see South Carolina’s first and only independent queer bookstore open its doors? Then support Queen Haven Books on Kickstarter! 

Meg Cabot is sharing the first 50 pages of her new novel Enchanted to Meet You, the next in her Witches of West Harbor series.

Barnes and Noble is putting on the costume of a local indie bookstore, but their inner mechanics are still all big-box chain corporation. How should we feel about Barnes & Noble now?

Fantasy to YA, romance to lit fic, this is what TikTok is reading in 2023.

Book Riot Recommends

Hi, welcome to everyone’s favorite segment of Book Radar called Book Riot Recommends. This is where I’ll talk to you about all the books I’m reading, the books I’m loving, and the books I can’t wait to read and love in the near future. I think you’re going to love them too!

Can’t Wait for This One

learned by heart book cover

Learned by Heart by Emma Donoghue (Little, Brown and Company, August 29)

Emma Donoghue’s Room is a book I still can’t stop thinking about years later. And yes, I know she’s written several great books since then, but it still goes back to Room for me. Could Learned by Heart usurp Room and become my new favorite Emma Donoghue novel? With this premise, it’s very possible. Also, look at this cover! I have heart eyes.

Learned by Heart is based on a true story and was written after years of research and real words from Anne Lister’s (the “first modern lesbian“) secret journal. Eliza Raine was an heiress who was orphaned and sent to England from India when she was only 6 years old. At the age of 14 in the year 1805, Eliza is sent to Manor School for young ladies. There she meets Anne Lister, a brilliant tomboy who is always getting herself into trouble. This book is their love story, full of passion and heartbreak.

Learned by Heart isn’t out until the end of August, but with the way this year is going, that’s basically tomorrow. I can’t wait!

Looking for fascinating stories, informed takes, useful advice, and more from experts in the world of books and reading? Subscribe to Book Riot’s The Deep Dive to get exclusive content delivered to your inbox.

Words of Literary Wisdom


“It’s not so much that I like him as a person, God, but as a boy he’s very handsome.”

— Are You There God? It’s Me, Margaret by Judy Blume

What I’m Watching This Weekend

Well, The Little Mermaid is out this weekend, and just like every millennial who grew up wishing they were Ariel, I will be at the theater watching the new live action remake. Do I think it will be good? Look, probably not. But I do think Halle Bailey looks beautiful and sings like an angel. Hot take: the only Disney live action remake that’s been good so far is Aladdin. I’m ready for the hate mail, but I will die on this hill.

And Here’s A Cat Picture!

two cats looking outside

We’ve been having a bit of nice weather lately, and the cats are loving sitting by the screen door and checking out the tennis players in the park across the street. Yes, our cats are big tennis fans, it’s true. They probably know more about tennis than I do.

Okay…well. Hopefully the weekend gets here soon, right? I hope it’s a good one for you!

Emily

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Today In Books

TikTok is Launching its Own Book Awards: Today in Books

Japanese Breakfast Announces Open Casting Call for the Lead in Crying in H Mart Adaptation

Japanese Breakfast posted on Twitter the details for an open casting call for Crying in H Mart. The casting call for the film’s lead asks for an “18-25 year old Korean American to play the role of Michelle [Zauner] in the film adaptation of the #1 NYTimes Bestseller Crying in H Mart.” To respond to the casting call, send a creative video introduction to hmartopencallcasting@gmail.com.

Meet the Rebellious Queer Witches of Brooms in the Graphic Novel Preview

The upcoming graphic novel Brooms — written by Jasmine Walls and illustrated by Teo DuVall, with colors by Bex Glendining and letters by Ariana Maher — won’t be out until October. But io9 is sharing a special preview. The graphic novel tells the story of queer, broom-racing witches in 1930s Mississippi. “Brooms is our way of exploring what a world with magic might be like in the context of history, especially in the American South,” writer Walls said in a statement. “These six young witches aren’t about to let anyone tell them what they can or can’t do, if that means learning magic in secret and sneaking out in the night to participate in illegal broom racing, then so be it. They can’t dodge trouble forever though, and sooner or later spells, curses, or the law are bound to catch up.” Brooms will be out on October 10.

TikTok is Launching its Own Book Awards

TikTok, the app that’s home to the very influential BookTok community, is officially launching the TikTok Book Awards: a first-of-its-kind celebration of the BookTok community, specifically in the UK and Ireland. The 2023 awards will celebrate authors, books, and creators across nine categories, including “Creator of the Year,” and “Best BookTok Revival,” and “Best Book I Wish I Could Read Again For The First Time.” The BookTok community can participate by using the hashtag #TikTokBookAwards to submit their nominations. The long-list will then go to the judge panel of experts, including author Candice Brathwaite, creators Coco (@cultofbooks) and Ben (@bcemercer), and Trâm-Anh Doan, the head of social media at Bloomsbury Publishing. In July, the TikTok community in the UK and Ireland will be able to vote on the finalists.

An Honor to be Nominated: A Guide to Major Book Awards

In this guide to major book awards, historical background is given, as well as categories, processes, and timelines.

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Today In Books

Halle Bailey and Fantasia Barrino Star in First Trailer for THE COLOR PURPLE: Today in Books

Caffè Nero Launches Major Book Awards

A year after rival coffee company Costa scrapped its popular book awards, Caffè Nero has announced its new suite of writing awards. The Nero Awards will choose winners in children’s books, debut fiction, fiction, and nonfiction. There will be no poetry award in Nero’s inaugural year. The awards are open to authors based in the UK and Ireland, and each award will carry a prize of £5,000. The four category winners will then compete for an overall award, titled the Nero Gold prize, which is worth £30,000.

Halle Bailey and Fantasia Barrino Star in First Trailer for The Color Purple

The first trailer for the musical film The Color Purple has finally dropped! The movie, based on the novel of the same name by Alice Walker, stars American Idol winner Fantasia Barrino in her major motion picture debut. Also starring in the film are Halle Bailey, Taraji P. Henson, H.E.R, Colman Domingo, Phylicia Pearl Mpasi, Corey Hawkins, and Danielle Brooks. The Color Purple is out in theaters on Christmas Day.

Overdue Book Returned Almost 100 Years Late to California Library

Better late than never? An overdue book was just returned to a Northern California library almost 100 years late. “It’s falling apart so it doesn’t have a spine anymore,” said Chris Kreiden, the director of the Saint Helena library…All of us are just, you know, wondering where the book could have been for so long, you know, from being checked out in 1927.” Published in 1892, this late library book was actually one of the first books available back when the library was a subscription service. A mystery man returned the book, A History of the United States by Benson Lossing, to the library last week.

Go Under the Sea with the Best Mermaids in Literature

If you love mermaids of all kinds — the beautiful and the tragic and the grotesque — here are some of the best mermaids from books.

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Today In Books

Author and YouTuber Hank Green Reveals Cancer Diagnosis: Today in Books

Jane Lynch, Roxane Gay, Carrie Brownstein to Star in Dykes to Watch Out For Audiobook

Jane Lynch, Robert Colindrez, Carrie Brownstein, Roxane Gay, and Jenn Collela will offer their voice work in Audible’s Dykes to Watch Out For, an adaptation of Alison Bechdel’s comic series. Of Audible’s production of her work, Bechdel says, “I am blown away…It’s such a great gift to hear the characters and their world come to life on audio, talking and kvetching and playing softball and going to marches.” Audible’s Dykes to Watch Out For was directed by Tony nominee Leigh Silverman and adapted by Pulitzer-Prize finalist and Only Murders in the Building writer Madeleine George. George described Bechdel’s story as “Charles Dickens meets Audre Lorde.” Dykes to Watch Out For will be available to stream exclusively on Audible beginning June 1, just in time for Pride Month.

Megan Abbott’s Beware the Woman Soon to be a Motion Picture

Best-selling author Megan Abbott’s latest novel is being adapted for the big screen. The story is pitched as Rebecca meets Rosemary’s Baby and is set in the remote woods of the Upper Peninsula. In a tweet, Megan Abbott wrote, “I’m so excited about this. Plus: when (& only when) the WGA strike ends and we get our fair contract, I’ll be writing the script.” Abbott’s novel Beware the Woman is coming out on May 30.

Author and YouTuber Hank Green Reveals Cancer Diagnosis

Popular YouTuber and author Hank Green announced Friday that he has been diagnosed with cancer. In a video posted on YouTube, Green said he was diagnosed with Hodgkin’s lymphoma and will soon be starting chemotherapy treatment. Green assured fans that this is one of the “most treatable” types of cancers and that his treatment should last about four months. “The goal is cure. The procedure to get there is fairly well known if unpleasant,” he said in the video. VidCon also announced that with his cancer diagnosis, Hank Green will miss this year’s convention. VidCon tweeted, “To our Co-Founder, go-to science guy, and only person on the internet who seems to understand where all the candle wax goes: we’re sending all the love from the VidCon community & beyond.”

8 New Magical Realism and Fabulism Books

You’ve read the classics. Now it’s time to dig into new magical realism books that have hit the shelf in recent years.

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Today In Books

Author Protests Banning of Her Book on Surviving Sexual Assault: Today in Books

Daredevil #1 Announced with Saladin Ahmed and Aaron Kuder to Create It

Marvel’s weekly podcast has announced that Daredevil will relaunch with Daredevil #1 on September 13. Taking over for writer Chip Zdarsky is Saladin Ahmed, the beloved Miles Morales and Ms. Marvel writer. The relaunch will include covers by John Romita Jr., Scott Hanna, and Marcio Menyz. On writing the new book, Ahmed says, “I wanted to only take this job on if I felt like I had a new, unique take on Matt and on Hell’s Kitchen…What I’ve really enjoyed in talking with other editors, other offices, is finding ways through these first couple of arcs we have planned to keep this centered on Matt, keep this centered on his people, in his world, but to bring (in a very organic and surprising fun way) some familiar Marvel figures that I think are going to blow people’s mind when they pop up on the page!” Check out the full press release and some of the new Daredevil covers at the Workprint.

Author Protests Banning of Her Book on Surviving Sexual Assault

Acclaimed author Laure Halse Anderson is speaking out against the recent banning of her novel Speak from schools. Anderson recently spoke at a Florida school board meeting, arguing that literature is an essential tool for victims of sexual assault. Anderson cited a recent study that reported 14% of high school aged girls and 4% of high school aged boys have been forced to have sex. Anderson noted that not reading the book and not talking about sexual violence “puts it underneath a lid.”

Join the Kickstarter to Support Queer Haven Books

Want to see South Carolina’s first and only independent queer bookstore open its doors? Then support Queen Haven Books on Kickstarter! The bookstore aims to sell books of all genres and for all ages that are written by or for queer people, including books with queer main characters. Queer Haven Books’s mission is to provide “a place of safety and refuge” for the queer community: a place where you can sit down, relax, enjoy a cup of coffee, read a queer book, and be a part of the community. The store hopes to open by the end of 2023. Their Kickstarter campaign ends on June 8, 2023. 

10 of the Best Cozy Manga that Feel Like Warm Hugs

For quiet days under the sun, check out 10 of the best cozy manga that will provide warmth and tenderness in your life.

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Today In Books

Chiwetel Ejiofor to Star Opposite Tom Hardy in VENOM 3: Today in Books

Thora Birch to Direct Adaptation of Elmore Leonard’s 2004 Crime Novel Mr. Paradise

Actress Thora Birch will be making her feature directorial debut on an adaptation of Elmore Leonard’s 2004 crime novel Mr. Paradise. The story centers around Kelly, an aspiring model who witnesses a murder. “I grew up loving so many blockbuster adaptations of Leonard’s work such as Get Shorty and Jackie Brown,” said Birch. “Mr. Paradise provides an ideal new lens to view Leonard through the eyes of our intriguing female protagonist as she navigates between the Detroit underworld and a persistent police investigator. The true heart of the film is the search for an escape from the quiet desperation and decay of Rust Belt Detroit, and the hope that new love can provide that escape.”

Chiwetel Ejiofor to Star Opposite Tom Hardy in Venom 3

Chiwetel Ejiofor will be joining the cast of Venom 3, starring Tom Hardy. Details about Ejiofor’s character are still being kept under wraps, but Hardy will return as the titular character and serve as producer. Kelly Marcel is attached to direct, and Avi Arad, Matt Tolmach, Amy Pascal, and Hutch Parker are also producing.

Expert Argues Beatrix Potter’s Peter Rabbit Originated in African Folktales

In a new essay for The Conversation, Dr. Emily Zobel Marshall argues that the quintessentially British Peter Rabbit series by Beatrix Potter might not be as British as we thought. Dr. Zobel Marshall calls for a wider acknowledgement of the debt Potter owes to the Brer Rabbit stories told by enslaved Africans working on American plantations. She says, “I was amazed to realise how little comment there has been over the years about the many similarities between Potter’s tales and the Africa-originated Brer Rabbit folktales.” Dr. Zobel Marshall is also the author of the book American Trickster: Trauma, Tradition and Brer Rabbit.

Why Are More and More Brands Creating Virtual Book Clubs?

These brands pivoting toward bookish territory definitely sparks some intrigue, and so it raises the question: why is this happening?

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Today In Books

Read the First 50 Pages of Meg Cabot’s ENCHANTED TO MEET YOU: Today in Books

Barnes & Noble Hosts Virtual Event with Ali Hazelwood

Barnes & Noble Union Square’s ticketed event with Ali Hazelwood in conversation with Adriana Herrera and Sarah MacLean is sold out. But no worries! You can attend the event virtually by purchasing a ticket from Eventbrite. The conversation with Ali Hazelwood, author of Love, Theoretically, will take place on Tuesday, June 13 at 6 p.m. Eastern time.

A Hemingway Film Adaptation Starring Liev Schrieber and Josh Hutcherson is Coming Soon

A film adaptation of Ernest Hemingway’s 1950 novel Across the River and Into the Trees has found a distributor in Bleeker Street and will be released soon. The film stars Liev Schreiber and Josh Hutcherson. It is directed by Paula Ortiz (The Bride), was adapted by Peter Flannery (The Devil’s Mistress), and was produced by Tribune Pictures. Stay tuned for more details about the film’s release date.

Read the First 50 Pages of Meg Cabot’s Enchanted to Meet You

Looking for a sneak peek at Meg Cabot’s latest novel Enchanted to Meet You? The author is sharing the first 50 pages of her new novel, the next in her Witches of West Harbor series. Dive into the novel now, and get ready for the book to be released on September 5 of this year!

8 Picture Books to Celebrate AAPI Heritage Month

Celebrate Asian American Pacific Islander Heritage month and share these picture books with the youngest readers in your life.